Androidhttp://www.businessinsider.com/category/android
en-usFri, 09 Dec 2016 07:33:16 -0500Fri, 09 Dec 2016 07:33:16 -0500The latest news on Android from Business Insiderhttp://static3.businessinsider.com/assets/images/bilogo-250x36-wide-rev.pngBusiness Insiderhttp://www.businessinsider.com
http://www.businessinsider.com/playstation-games-iphone-android-2016-12Following in Nintendo's steps, PlayStation is bringing games to iPhone and Androidhttp://www.businessinsider.com/playstation-games-iphone-android-2016-12
Wed, 07 Dec 2016 13:13:46 -0500Ben Gilbert
<p>When Apple announced its new iPhone in September, the news was overshadowed by a goofy plumber with a bushy mustache and bright blue overalls: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/super-mario-run-super-mario-is-coming-to-the-iphone-2016-9">Nintendo unveiled its first-ever smartphone game</a> starring its biggest icon, Super Mario himself.</p>
<p><img src="http://static5.businessinsider.com/image/57d0757b09d293d50f8b6739-1920/mobilesupermariorunillustration02.jpg" alt="super mario run icon" data-mce-source="Nintendo/Apple" /></p>
<p>"Super Mario Run" <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/super-mario-run-december-15-2016-11">arrives on December 15 for $10</a>, and it's coming to the iPhone/iPad first thanks to a deal struck between Nintendo and Apple. Nintendo creative director Shigeru Miyamoto even appeared on stage to announce it &mdash; Miyamoto is essentially the Walt Disney of video games, having created Mario, Link, Donkey Kong, and many other iconic Nintendo characters.</p>
<p>For Miyamoto to appear on stage with Apple's Tim Cook was, to put it lightly, a very big deal.</p>
<p><img src="http://static3.businessinsider.com/image/58483c30ba6eb601688b6f70-1500" alt="Shigeru Miyamoto and Tim Cook" data-mce-source="Stephen Lam/Getty Images" /></p>
<p>In a Tokyo event on December 7, Sony's mobile gaming unit made a less splashy, broader announcement about Sony's PlayStation games: 10 smartphone titles are in the works, with six planned for launch in the coming fiscal year, <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/us-sony-mobilegaming-idUSKBN13W0TY">according to Reuters</a>.</p>
<p>Unlike Nintendo's approach, Sony's leading with lesser-known games from PlayStation's past &mdash; music/rhythm game "PaRappa the Rapper" and tactical role-playing game "Arc the Lad."&nbsp;Also unlike Nintendo's approach, it appears that Sony's targeting Japan first; the games will arrive on iPhone and Android in Japan and other parts of Asia before going worldwide.&nbsp;</p>
<p>This makes particular sense for the "Arc the Lad" series &mdash; it's wildly popular in Japan.&nbsp;</p>
<p><img src="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/58484e2be02ba7e5008b7ed5-1159/screen shot 2016-12-07 at 125937 pm.png" alt="Arc the Lad" data-mce-source="Sony" /></p>
<p>It looks like the mobile versions of these games aren't direct ports of the original PlayStation 1 games.</p>
<p>A version of "Hot Shots Golf" (known as "Everybody's Golf" in Japan) shown after the presentation demonstrates how the series is being adapted for smartphone gaming:</p>
<p><img src="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/58485b38ba6eb6d3008b7f67-839/screen shot 2016-12-07 at 15527 pm.png" alt="Hot Shots Golf (mobile)" data-mce-source="Sony" /></p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.jp.playstation.com/blog/detail/4160/20161207-forwardworks.html">PlayStation Blog in Japan</a> has a ton more details, and a longer list of games. Many of them seemed destined to not arrive in the US, but assuredly some will &mdash; here's the list:</p>
<ul>
<li>"Arc the Lad"</li>
<li>"PaRappa the Rappa"</li>
<li>"Everybody's Golf"</li>
<li>"DASH!"</li>
<li>"Wild Arms"</li>
<li>"Summer Holiday 20th Century"</li>
<li>A game starring PlayStation's Japanese mascot&nbsp;Toro Inoue</li>
<li>"Disgaea"</li>
<li>"Night Time"</li>
<li>"Between Sky and Sea" ("Sora to Umi no Aida")</li>
</ul>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Many of these games have a "TBD" launch window, but "Everybody's Golf" is slated to arrive in Spring 2017.</p>
<p><img src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/58485dd8ba6eb61c008b8035-1097/screen shot 2016-12-07 at 20632 pm.png" alt="PlayStation smartphone games" data-mce-source="Sony" /></p>
<p>Sony's tried its hand at mobile gaming&nbsp;in the past &mdash; a variety of PlayStation 1 games were sold on mobile phones under the "PlayStation Mobile" name. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xperia_Play">Sony's Xperia Play phone</a> even had a built-in gamepad specifically for use with these types of games.</p>
<p>Of course, if you're interested in playing classic (and new) PlayStation games on-the-go right now, there's always the PlayStation Vita. Sony's plan is to start selling these games in Spring&nbsp;2017 &mdash; we've asked for more information, but haven't heard back as of publishing.</p><p><strong>SEE ALSO:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/super-mario-run-super-mario-is-coming-to-the-iphone-2016-9" >Super Mario is coming to the iPhone</a></strong></p>
<p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/playstation-games-iphone-android-2016-12#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> <p>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-add-bigger-hard-drive-playstation-4-2016-10">How to add a bigger hard drive to the Playstation 4</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/apple-iphone-7-headphone-jack-sales-market-share-2016-12The death of the headphone jack has been a ‘non-issue’ for iPhone 7 sales in the US (AAPL)http://www.businessinsider.com/apple-iphone-7-headphone-jack-sales-market-share-2016-12
Wed, 07 Dec 2016 11:01:31 -0500Jeff Dunn
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/57d0c31809d29325008b6906-2400/ap_16251742821351.jpg" alt="apple iphone 7" data-mce-source="AP"></p><p>When it was first rumored that <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/how-apple-killing-headphone-jack-affects-headphones-iphone-7-2016-7" target="_blank">Apple would omit the headphone jack</a> from the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/iphone-7-review-2016-9" target="_blank">iPhone 7</a>, it kicked off a months-long wave of online furor.</p>
<p>When <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/why-apple-got-rid-of-the-headphone-jack-in-the-iphone-7-2016-9" target="_blank">Apple actually went and did it</a>, citing “courage” as the big reason for its decision, that outrage only intensified, and more <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/apple-iphone-7-headphone-dongle-review-2016-9" target="_blank">words were written about dongles</a> than have probably been written in years.</p>
<p>After a few months of the iPhone 7 being on the market, though, it turns out all that anger didn’t really mean much.</p>
<p>At least, that’s according to market research firm Kantar Worldpanel, whose <a href="http://www.kantarworldpanel.com/global/News/iOS-Share-Driven-Higher-by-iPhone-77-Plus-Sales" target="_blank">latest quarterly report</a> says “the lack of the headphone jack has proved to be a non-issue for US iPhone consumers,” given that the iPhone 7 was the top-selling phone in the country in the three months ending October 2016. That was reportedly good for 10.6% of US phone sales over that time.</p>
<p>The iPhone 7 Plus, meanwhile, is said to have been the fourth highest-selling phone in the US over the period, with 5.3% of sales. The iPhone 6s and Samsung Galaxy S7 were second and third, respectively.</p>
<p><img src="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/582b690846e27a1c008b6bcf-2250" alt="iPhone 7" data-mce-source="Hollis Johnson/Business Insider">In general, Kantar says the iPhone’s market share rose from 33.5% to 40.5% in the US year-over-year. That 7% raise is said to put iOS at its highest point in the US since January 2015.</p>
<p>Worldwide, Kantar says that iOS saw yearly gains in most regions — save Germany and Urban China — but that Android, unsurprisingly, remains the dominant platform overall, with its only significant declines coming in the US, where premium phone sales are more prevalent.</p>
<p>Other noteworthy findings include Google’s Pixel phones grabbing 0.5% of the US market, bringing it in line with the likes of Huawei and Microsoft, despite releasing at the tail end of October.</p>
<p><img src="http://static1.businessinsider.com/image/57edbc1c746a3918008b4572-1200/it-might-have-two-speakers.png" alt="iphone 6s vs iphone 7" data-mce-source="Austin Evans/YouTube"></p>
<p><span>Though Kantar doesn’t explicitly say </span><em>why</em><span> the iPhone saw such gains in the US, the </span><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/samsung-galaxy-note-7-recall-dead-chart-2016-10" target="_blank">debacle with Samsung's Galaxy Note 7</a><span> likely left a big gap for Apple to fill. </span></p>
<p>In any case, while those who railed against the removal of the headphone jack aren’t necessarily wrong — Bluetooth headphones tend to cost more and sound worse — it seems like most people are loyal enough to the iPhone brand to live with an adapter, or pay for a newer type of technology.</p>
<p>On Tuesday, it was reported that <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/samsung-galaxy-s8-no-headphone-jack-home-button-report-2016-12" target="_blank">Samsung will also ditch the headphone jack</a> with its forthcoming Galaxy S8.</p><p><strong>SEE ALSO:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/bluetooth-audio-future-update-low-energy-2016-10" >The people behind Bluetooth are planning some big changes for next year</a></strong></p>
<p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/apple-iphone-7-headphone-jack-sales-market-share-2016-12#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> <p>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/xiaomi-new-mi-mix-better-than-iphone-2016-10">The ‘Apple of China’ just unveiled a phone that’s more powerful and better looking than the iPhone</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/google-search-app-new-button-2016-12There's a new button in your Google app — here's what it does (GOOG, GOOGL)http://www.businessinsider.com/google-search-app-new-button-2016-12
Tue, 06 Dec 2016 13:02:41 -0500Avery Hartmans
<p>Google just made a tiny change to its search app that could make using it a whole lot easier. &nbsp;</p>
<p>The company updated its flagship app on Tuesday, adding a feature that separates your need-to-know info from the rest of your feed.&nbsp;</p>
<p>For those who aren't regular users, the search app already shows relevant news and information that is personalized for each user, and Google Now helpfully pulls in information like upcoming travel or appointments from your other Google apps, like Gmail or Calendar. But that information is often buried within the feed, hiding between the latest NFL standings and a recap of the most recent episode of NBC's "This Is Us."</p>
<p>The new update separates that information out, creating a new tab called "Upcoming" that shows you that crucial information without the noise of entertainment or sports news.&nbsp;</p>
<p><strong>Here's what the app looked like before:</strong></p>
<p><img src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/5846f6ddba6eb619268b77ed-640/img6169.png" alt="IMG_6169" data-mce-source="Google" /></p>
<p>My upcoming travel didn't show up until I scrolled halfway down, and then it was immediately followed by an update on some TV programs I watch.</p>
<p><strong>Here's what the new update looks like:</strong></p>
<p><img src="http://static1.businessinsider.com/image/5846f644e02ba72b318b7669-1080" alt="feed" data-mce-source="Google" /></p>
<p>Clicking that button takes you to your "Upcoming" tab.</p>
<p><img src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/5846f75eba6eb66d268b782b-1080" alt="upcoming tab Google app" data-mce-source="Google" /></p>
<p>There, you can see information like your next flight, a party you have to attend later, and the amount of time it'll take to get to your next appointment without having to scroll through the entire app. It's now compiled in one central location you can access just by tapping one button.</p>
<p><span>The update hasn't rolled out yet for iOS &mdash; it's coming soon, </span><a href="https://blog.google/products/search/google-app-update-making-it-easier-keep-things-you-need-know/" target="_blank">Google says</a><span> &mdash; but it's available on Android starting Tuesday.&nbsp;</span></p><p><strong>SEE ALSO:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/google-launches-app-building-tool-2016-11" >Google just launched a tool for businesses to build simple cloud apps</a></strong></p>
<p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/google-search-app-new-button-2016-12#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> <p>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/sleep-8-hour-cycle-ancestors-myth-2016-11">We sleep much differently than our ancestors — here's why</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/google-chromebook-no-perfect-option-2016-12If you can wait, you shouldn't buy a Google Chromebook right now (GOOG, GOOGL)http://www.businessinsider.com/google-chromebook-no-perfect-option-2016-12
Thu, 01 Dec 2016 15:49:42 -0500Jeff Dunn
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/58407fb3ba6eb66d268b6daf-800" alt="HP Chromebook13 3" data-mce-source="HP"></p><p>Chromebooks are <em>so close</em>.</p>
<p>Apple’s Mac lineup appears set for the foreseeable future, but with <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/apple-macbook-air-dont-buy-it-2016-10" target="_blank">no refresh to the aging MacBook Air</a>, there's no one up-to-date notebook that costs less than $1,299.</p>
<p>The momentum behind super affordable Windows laptops, meanwhile, has faded — and what <em>is</em> available for less than $400 is typically marked by flimsy hardware, slow processors, and ugly displays.</p>
<p>That means there’s still an opportunity for Google’s low-cost laptops to swoop in and attract budget buyers. Not everyone wants a tablet. And Chrome OS, the lightweight operating system at the heart of all Chromebooks, remains supremely efficient and perfectly competent for many people.</p>
<p>No, it doesn’t do Photoshop, but if you think about the things most people do with a laptop — read websites, watch videos, write papers — there’s little that Google’s Chrome browser doesn’t enable. I’ve used one as my main machine for the past two years, and I’ve been surprised at how little I’ve missed.</p>
<p>Plus, Chrome is <em>fast</em> here. It’s not the heavy breathing memory hog it can be on Mac or Windows; it is Chrome OS, and its commitment to the line of Chromebooks means it stays fast, even on lesser hardware. Meaning: Done right, Chromebooks can be good and cheap at the same time.</p>
<p><img src="http://static5.businessinsider.com/image/58408093e02ba7e5008b7172-1421/undefined" alt="Acer Chromebook" data-mce-source="Flickr">Right now, though, nobody’s really doing it right. Yes, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/best-chromebook-buying-guide-google-chrome-os-2016-7" target="_blank">there are good Chromebooks</a>. The Asus Chromebook 13 has a 1080p display. The Lenovo ThinkPad 13 Chromebook has a comfy keyboard. The Acer Chromebook R11 is convertible and lightweight. And so on.</p>
<p>But for every aspect Chromebooks like these get right, there’s always some fundamental annoyance that’s just difficult to live with.</p>
<p>The Asus’ full HD screen is too dim, and the whole thing gets just a bit too slow over time. The Lenovo’s display has mediocre colors. The Acer’s 11-inch display is low-resolution, and likely too small for some. A 13-inch model can't multitask comfortably. </p>
<p>Up until a few months ago, the Toshiba Chromebook 2 was the clear standout. It cost $300, and it had everything important. But <a href="http://www.anandtech.com/show/10197/toshiba-details-its-pc-business-reorg-set-to-concentrate-on-tecra-and-portg-brands-for-business-users" target="_blank">Toshiba recently quit</a> the consumer laptop game, and now that laptop looks to be gone for good.</p>
<p>Today, there is one Chromebook that ticks all the boxes, and that’s the Dell Chromebook 13. Its keyboard is great, its battery lasts more than 10 hours, it looks sharp, it feels sturdy, and it’s plenty fast enough.</p>
<p><img src="http://static3.businessinsider.com/image/584080cfe02ba71b008b7137-1080/dell-chromebook-13jpg.png" alt="dell chromebook 13" data-mce-source="Dell">But it’s just too expensive. If you’re okay dropping a minimum of $429 on a Chromebook, by all means buy the Dell and don’t look back. But even if Chrome OS is more useful than most people think, paying this sort of premium for a computer that cannot run desktop apps is a tough ask, no matter how nice it is.</p>
<p>Google is aware of this shortcoming, though, and aims to address it by porting over the app store from its <em>other</em> OS, Android. We <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/google-play-store-android-apps-chromebook-hands-on-2016-6" target="_blank">tested a beta version of this in June</a> — it’s buggy and awkward, but with some polish, it should be an easy way to add the offline (and gaming) abilities Chrome OS is lacking.</p>
<p>Google has taken longer to roll out the Google Play Store to Chromebooks than it initially promised, but <a href="https://9to5google.com/2016/11/25/android-apps-acer-chromebook-asus-c300-developer-channel/" target="_blank">things are (slowly) moving</a>, and now the plan is to <a href="https://www.chromium.org/chromium-os/chrome-os-systems-supporting-android-apps" target="_blank">release it en masse</a> “later in 2016/2017.”</p>
<p>Unfortunately, it’s going to make the search for a balanced Chromebook even harder, since Android apps play <em>much</em> nicer with a touchscreen, and not every notebook has that. In Dell’s case, you can <a href="http://www.dell.com/us/business/p/chromebook-13-7310/pd?oc=bto004c731013us&amp;model_id=chromebook-13-7310" target="_blank">get one</a> for $629. That’s too much.</p>
<p><img src="http://static1.businessinsider.com/image/58408167e02ba72e008b7102-1200/20120628sundarpichaigoogleio001.jpg" alt="Sundar Pichai Chrome" data-mce-source="AP" data-mce-caption="Google CEO Sundar Pichai.">There are two clouds hanging over all this.</p>
<p>The simple one is that CES is next month. With Android apps mostly on the horizon, it wouldn’t be a shock to see a wave of flexible, touchscreen Chromebooks pop up. Whether those will be any good, who knows; Chromebooks’ growth is still coming <a href="http://www.theverge.com/2016/5/19/11711714/chromebooks-outsold-macs-us-idc-figures" target="_blank">from schools</a> more than the general public, so the price hike that comes with adding a touchscreen may not be worth it.</p>
<p>The second cloud hanging over Chromebooks is Andromeda, the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/google-andromeda-os-android-pixel-laptop-nexus-tablet-2016-9" target="_blank">long-rumored fusion</a> of Chrome OS and Android. <a href="http://www.androidpolice.com/2016/09/26/exclusive-google-is-planning-a-pixel-3-laptop-running-the-andromeda-os-for-release-in-q3-2017/" target="_blank">Android Police reported in September</a> that Google is working on a high-end “Pixel 3” laptop that will run that blended operating system, arrive in Q3 2017, and start at $799. That’s a lot of money, but if Google is about to combine Chrome OS and Android, rather than shove the latter into the former, that might explain why the current Chromebook market is so underwhelming.</p>
<p>All of that is for the future, though. Today, in the thick of the holiday season, it’s hard to point to any one Chromebook and confidently say, “put your money toward this.” You can get something good, but it's hard to get something great.</p><p><strong>SEE ALSO:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/best-cheap-phones-buying-guide-oneplus-moto-g-2016-11" >The 7 best affordable smartphones you can buy</a></strong></p>
<p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/google-chromebook-no-perfect-option-2016-12#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> <p>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/xiaomi-new-mi-mix-better-than-iphone-2016-10">The ‘Apple of China’ just unveiled a phone that’s more powerful and better looking than the iPhone</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/top-android-apps-of-the-year-2016-11The top 10 Android apps and games of 2016 (GOOG)http://www.businessinsider.com/top-android-apps-of-the-year-2016-11
Thu, 01 Dec 2016 12:06:00 -0500Steve Kovach
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/58403776e02ba75d658b5f79-2400/ap16196843738904.jpg" alt="pokemon go" data-mce-source="AP Photo/Nati Harnik" data-mce-caption="Players look at their phones during a &amp;quotPokemon Go&amp;quot event at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Neb., Thursday, July 14, 2016. Nebraska Athletic Department officials opened Memorial Stadium for two hours Thursday to accommodate &amp;quotPokemon Go&amp;quot players eager to capture animated monsters at the venerated field." /></p><p>The year is nearly over, and it's time for a little reflection. Harambe. The election.</p>
<p>And the top Android apps, of course.</p>
<p>Google released its annual list of the top Android apps on Thursday.&nbsp;The&nbsp;list is split into&nbsp;the top 5 apps and the top 5 games.</p>
<p>Google ranked the apps by "top trending," which is a mixture of downloads and popularity at the time the apps were released. These aren't the most-downloaded apps of the year, just the ones that were trending the most.</p>
<p>Check them out below. Don't worry. Pok&eacute;mon GO made the list.</p><p><strong>SEE ALSO:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/most-exciting-gadgets-2017-2016-11" >The 15 most exciting tech products launching in 2017</a></strong></p>
<h3>Top trending apps</h3>
<img src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/58403dd3ba6eb6d3008b6f71-400-300/top-trending-apps.jpg" alt="" />
<p><p>Below are the top trending Android apps of 2016. We've ranked them in reverse order.</p></p>
<br/><br/><h3>5. MSQRD</h3>
<img src="http://static3.businessinsider.com/image/56f1dc14910584cc008b82c8-400-300/5-msqrd.jpg" alt="" />
<p><p>MSQRD, which was bought by Facebook earlier this year, lets you add filters to your face for goofy selfies. It's very similar to the lenses feature in Snapchat.</p>
<p><a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=me.msqrd.android">Download it here</a>.</p></p>
<br/><br/><h3>4. Emoji Keyboard Pro</h3>
<img src="http://static3.businessinsider.com/image/58403d67e02ba735318b6ad8-400-300/4-emoji-keyboard-pro.jpg" alt="" />
<p><p>Not all Android phones come with a readily accessible emoji keyboard. Emoji Keyboard Pro fixes that.</p>
<p><a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.newapp.emoji.keyboard">Download it here</a>.</p></p>
<br/><br/><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/top-android-apps-of-the-year-2016-11#/#3-castbox-4">See the rest of the story at Business Insider</a> http://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-check-if-your-google-account-is-infected-with-malware-2016-11Here's how to check if your Google account is one of the 1 million infected with malware (GOOG, GOOGL)http://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-check-if-your-google-account-is-infected-with-malware-2016-11
Wed, 30 Nov 2016 10:13:40 -0500Avery Hartmans
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static1.businessinsider.com/image/583ee5f6ba6eb66d268b686a-2080/shutterstock446010916.jpg" alt="Android" data-mce-source="Shutterstock" data-link="http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-446010916/stock-photo-mountain-view-causa-june-30-android-nougat-replica-in-front-of-google-office-on-june-30-2016.html?src=VFR4zJU7C1ZoECngfqRvsA-1-3" /></p><p>Anyone running an older version of the Android operating system, be warned: Malware is infecting 13,000 Android devices every day, putting at risk the private details of more than 1 million Google accounts.&nbsp;</p>
<p>That's according to cybersecurity software company <a href="http://www.nasdaq.com/press-release/more-than-1-million-google-accounts-breached-by-gooligan-new-android-malware-variant-20161130-00538#ixzz4RVHl2H00" target="_blank">Check Point</a>, which discovered a new piece of malware called "Gooligan" that's infecting Android phones and stealing email addresses.</p>
<p>Users who download Gooligan-infected apps or click links in phishing messages are being exposed to the malware, which allows attackers to access sensitive information from Google apps like Gmail, Drive, and Photos.&nbsp;<span></span><span><br /></span></p>
<p>Once attackers hack into the device, they're buying apps on the Google Play store and writing reviews posing as the phone's owner, Check Point says.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Anyone who owns a device running Android 4 and 5 &mdash; that includes Android Jelly Bean, KitKat, and Lollipop &mdash; is most at risk, according to Check Point, and those devices make up nearly 75% of Android users.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Check Point has made an <a href="https://gooligan.checkpoint.com/" target="_blank">online tool</a> to check if your phone is infected with Gooligan. By typing your Google address into the Gooligan Checker, you can find out if you've been hacked.</p>
<p>Security issues on Android are aren't exactly uncommon, since Android runs on third-party devices that are in charge of their own security and can be slow to update. <span>Back <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/android-malware-infects-85-million-devices-2016-7" target="_blank">in July</a>, Check Point discovered another breach that affected 85 million Android phones. The devices were infected with malware that was generating </span><span>$300,000 every month in ad revenue. And <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/android-malware-spreads-using-google-adsense-advertising-network-kaspersky-researchers-2016-8" target="_blank">in August</a>, hackers began using Google AdSense to target Android users and steal their banking data.&nbsp;</span></p>
<p><span>"We&rsquo;ve taken many actions to protect our users and improve the security of the Android ecosystem overall," Google's director of Android security Adrian Ludwig wrote in <a href="https://plus.google.com/+AdrianLudwig/posts/GXzJ8vaAFsi" target="_blank">a Google+&nbsp;post</a> about the attack.&nbsp;"These include: revoking affected users&rsquo; Google Account tokens, providing them with clear instructions to sign back in securely, removing apps related to this issue from affected devices, deploying enduring Verify Apps improvements to protect users from these apps in the future and collaborating with ISPs to eliminate this malware altogether."</span></p>
<p><span>Head over to <a href="https://plus.google.com/+AdrianLudwig/posts/GXzJ8vaAFsi" target="_blank">Ludwig's post</a> for more on how Google is&nbsp;tracking malware and working to keep users' information secure.&nbsp;</span></p><p><strong>SEE ALSO:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/best-android-phones-2016-8" >RANKED: The best Android phones in the world</a></strong></p>
<p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-check-if-your-google-account-is-infected-with-malware-2016-11#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> <p>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/why-boeing-747-front-hump-2016-11">Here's why Boeing 747s have a giant hump in the front</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/best-cheap-phones-buying-guide-oneplus-moto-g-2016-11The 7 best affordable smartphones you can buyhttp://www.businessinsider.com/best-cheap-phones-buying-guide-oneplus-moto-g-2016-11
Thu, 24 Nov 2016 11:00:00 -0500Jeff Dunn
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><img style="float:right;" src="http://static5.businessinsider.com/image/57a88ee6ce38f252008b545b-1067/iphone-se-apple-pay.png" alt="iphone se" data-mce-source="Business Insider/Steve Kovach" />The days of needing to pay top&nbsp;dollar to get a good smartphone are dead and buried. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The smartphone has become a commodity, and as such the costs of manufacturing something decent has gone down. That means great phones&nbsp;are now common for a price of around $400, and good phones&nbsp;are available&nbsp;for much less than that.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Still, some devices are better than others. So after testing a whole lot of phones this year, we&rsquo;ve broken down the affordable side of the market, and rounded up the handsets&nbsp;worth buying.&nbsp;</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">&nbsp;</span></p>
<p>.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>SEE ALSO:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/best-wireless-headphones-iphone-7-bluetooth-2016-11" >The 11 best wireless headphones you can buy</a></strong></p>
<h3>The best $100 phone, with major caveats: Blu R1 HD</h3>
<img src="http://static5.businessinsider.com/image/58360208ba6eb619268b5d84-400-300/the-best-100-phone-with-major-caveats-blu-r1-hd.jpg" alt="" />
<p><p>The <a href="https://www.amazon.com/BLU-R1-HD-Exclusive-Lockscreen/dp/B01H2E0J5M" target="_blank">Blu R1 HD</a> is the&nbsp;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-fire-tablet-review-50-dollars-2015-10" target="_blank">Amazon Fire</a> of smartphones: Nothing about it is great, but it&rsquo;s way better than it has any right to be. It goes for as low as $100 unlocked on its own, but that can go down to just $50 if you&rsquo;re an Amazon Prime member. That&rsquo;s a good bargain, but if you get the model that&rsquo;s $10 more, you get a perfectly competent performer that doesn&rsquo;t feel totally cheap and has a bright, 5-inch, 720p display.</p>
<p>The catch with that &ldquo;Prime exclusive&rdquo; deal is you have to deal with a torrent of Amazon-sponsored bloatware and lock screen ads. Yes, lock screen ads &mdash; as in, your phone becomes a pocket billboard every time you turn it on. You might find this dystopian, or you might learn to live with it. Maybe you&rsquo;ll do both. Whatever the case, this is the only phone worth considering for under $100.</p>
<p>However &mdash; and this is a big however &mdash; there&rsquo;s another reason to potentially hold off. The New York Times <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/16/us/politics/china-phones-software-security.html?hp&amp;action=click&amp;pgtype=Homepage&amp;clickSource=story-heading&amp;module=first-column-region&amp;region=top-news&amp;WT.nav=top-news&amp;_r=1" target="_blank">reported in November</a> that the R1 HD, along with a few other cheaper, little-known Android phones, was left open to a security flaw that allowed text messages, location info, and other personal info to be sent to a server in China. Blu says it has patched the flaw, and that the R1 HD is no longer affected.</p>
<p>I&rsquo;ll leave it here because of that, but know that risks like this are ever-present with inexpensive Android phones and smaller manufacturers. If you can afford to take a step up, do so.</p>
<p>Check <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/smartphone-costs-50-but-with-a-catch-2016-7" target="_blank">our full review</a> for more.</p></p>
<br/><br/><h3>The best $200 phone: Lenovo Moto G4</h3>
<img src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/583602c0ba6eb64e018b5846-400-300/the-best-200-phone-lenovo-moto-g4.jpg" alt="" />
<p><p>Let&rsquo;s be clear: This year&rsquo;s <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Moto-4th-Gen-Unlocked-Black/dp/B01DZJFSZ4" target="_blank">Moto G</a> has its issues. It&rsquo;s jumped up to a potentially unwieldy 5.5 inches, it&rsquo;s not water-resistant anymore, and the Snapdragon 617 chip at its core isn&rsquo;t terribly smooth. It doesn&rsquo;t feel like a steal the way its predecessors did. Motorola's new parent company Lenovo hasn&rsquo;t really improved on anything the company did when it was owned by Google, either.</p>
<p>Still, the Moto G formula is hard to screw up. For $200 (or $150 with the Prime offer noted above), you get a great 1080p panel, a nice build, enough battery life, and a respectable camera. The totally clean take on Android, meanwhile, is excellent at any price. (As is the microSD slot.) It runs quickly enough for casual use, too &mdash; just don&rsquo;t expect it to punch far above its price tag this time out.</p>
<p>There is a higher-end <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Moto-Plus-4th-Gen-Unlocked/dp/B01DZJFYLC/ref=sr_1_4?s=wireless&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1479929649&amp;sr=1-4&amp;keywords=moto+g4+plus" target="_blank">Moto G4 Plus</a> available, too, but it&rsquo;s not much of an upgrade. The camera&rsquo;s a bit sharper, and there&rsquo;s a fingerprint scanner. Is that worth another $50 to you? If so, go for it, but I doubt it.</p>
<p>Check <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/moto-g4-review-2016-7" target="_blank">our full review</a> for more.</p></p>
<br/><br/><h3>The best $400-450 phone: OnePlus 3T</h3>
<img src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/5836032aba6eb601688b5194-400-300/the-best-400-450-phone-oneplus-3t.jpg" alt="" />
<p><p>For the past five months, the best value in smartphones <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/oneplus-3-review-2016-6" target="_blank">has been the OnePlus 3</a>. Simply put, it has no significant weaknesses: The smooth metal design looks and feels great, the hardware flies, the software is clean, and the <a href="http://www.techinsider.io/oneplus-3-vs-galaxy-s7-camera-comparison-2016-6" target="_blank">16-megapixel camera is excellent</a>.</p>
<p>The 5.5.-inch 1080p panel isn&rsquo;t as sharp as those on other flagships, but it&rsquo;s more than fine if you stay out of VR, and a few software updates helped make it nice and accurate. While there&rsquo;s no microSD slot, its 64GB of storage is plentiful. The lack of water resistance stings, but otherwise, it is a $600 phone that only costs $400.</p>
<p>Or at least, it <em>was</em> that. In November, OnePlus made the curious decision to kill the 3 completely. In its place comes the new OnePlus 3T, which still looks and feels fantastic, but ticks the processor up to the class-leading Snapdragon 821, sharpens up the front-facing camera, and adds a couple more hours of battery life.</p>
<p>It also knocks the base price up to $440. That&rsquo;s a bit harsh for upgrades that, in everyday use, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/oneplus-3-vs-oneplus-3t-is-is-worth-the-upgrade-2016-11/#they-look-exactly-the-same-save-for-the-new-darker-gunmetal-color-thats-replacing-the-graphite-option-1" target="_blank">don&rsquo;t make <em>that</em> much of a difference</a>. The continued lack of water resistance or microSD slot is disappointing, too. (A 128GB option is available for $480.) But regardless of whether or not OnePlus is trying to squeeze out higher margins, the 3T&rsquo;s foundation is too good for it to fail.</p>
<p>Check <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/oneplus-3t-review-2016-11" target="_blank">our full review</a> for more.</p></p>
<br/><br/><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/best-cheap-phones-buying-guide-oneplus-moto-g-2016-11#/#also-worth-considering-zte-axon-7-4">See the rest of the story at Business Insider</a> http://www.businessinsider.com/microsoft-solitaire-games-price-availability-features-freecell-2016-11Microsoft is finally bringing Solitaire to the iPhone (AAPL, MSFT, GOOG, GOOGL)http://www.businessinsider.com/microsoft-solitaire-games-price-availability-features-freecell-2016-11
Wed, 23 Nov 2016 12:26:24 -0500Kif Leswing
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static5.businessinsider.com/image/5835cf1de02ba79f028b5fb0-750/undefined" alt="Microsoft Solitaire" data-mce-source="Screenshot/Microsoft" /></p><p>Microsoft Solitaire, the game that hundreds of millions of people have killed time with on Windows computers, is now available for <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/microsoft-solitaire-collection/id1103438575?mt=8">iPhones</a> and <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.microsoft.microsoftsolitairecollection">Android phones</a>.</p>
<p>This is not a drill.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The game is free and available to download under the prosaic name "Microsoft Solitaire Collection." The app includes five different Solitaire games, including the classic Klondike game.</p>
<p>The app also includes Spider, and Freecell, which have been traditionally bundled with Windows computers in the past.</p>
<p>The app also includes two new games called&nbsp;Pyramid and TriPeaks.</p>
<p>Users&nbsp;can pay $1.99 to remove ads on the app and unlock other features.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The launch is great timing from Microsoft &mdash; now anyone with a smartphone&nbsp;can kill time this Thanksgiving while waiting for the turkey to roast.</p>
<p>Microsoft, if you're listening, we'd love a Minesweeper iOS port next.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Here's what it looks like when you win a game of Klondike:</p>
<p><img src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/5835db26ba6eb604688b501f-640/slack for ios uploadnull.jpeg" alt="Klondike Win" data-mce-source="Screenshot/Microsoft" /></p>
<p><em>Avery Hartmans contributed reporting.&nbsp;</em></p><p><strong>SEE ALSO:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/untold-story-vergence-labs-snapchat-acquired-spectacles-2016-11" >The founding story of Spectacles</a></strong></p>
<p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/microsoft-solitaire-games-price-availability-features-freecell-2016-11#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> <p>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/animated-map-marijuana-legal-election-votes-2016-11">This animated map shows where marijuana is legal in the US</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/pocket-sized-airselfie-drone-accessory-taking-great-photographs-smartphone-2016-11Pocket-sized drone is the perfect accessory for taking great selfieshttp://www.businessinsider.com/pocket-sized-airselfie-drone-accessory-taking-great-photographs-smartphone-2016-11
Tue, 22 Nov 2016 07:27:48 -0500Leon Siciliano
<p>A UK start-up has created a pocket-sized drone that fits in a case along with your smartphone.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.airselfiecamera.com/">The AirSelfie</a> is controlled by a virtual joystick through an app. It has a 5MP camera which can also record HD videos.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The mini-drone has already <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1733117980/airselfie">reached its crowdfunding goal</a>&nbsp;and will be available to buy for around &pound;150 from March 2017.</p>
<p><em>Produced by <a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/author/leon-siciliano">Leon Siciliano</a></em></p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<div></div><p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/pocket-sized-airselfie-drone-accessory-taking-great-photographs-smartphone-2016-11#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/places-on-google-maps-you-cant-see-2016-117 places you can’t find on Google Mapshttp://www.businessinsider.com/places-on-google-maps-you-cant-see-2016-11
Mon, 21 Nov 2016 14:08:00 -0500Darren Weaver
<p><div>
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</div></p>
<p>Google Maps is one of the most amazing pieces of technology to come out of Silicon Valley. You can explore the entire world without ever leaving the comfort of your living room. However, there are a few places on Earth that Google won't let you see.</p>
<p><span><strong>Follow Tech Insider:</strong> <a href="http://www.facebook.com/techinsider">On Facebook</a></span></p><p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/places-on-google-maps-you-cant-see-2016-11#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/android-users-arent-switching-to-apple-iphone-7-2016-11Android users aren't switching to Apple's iPhone 7 (GOOG, AAPL)http://www.businessinsider.com/android-users-arent-switching-to-apple-iphone-7-2016-11
Mon, 21 Nov 2016 10:15:00 -0500BI Intelligence
<p><em><img style="float:right;" src="http://static1.businessinsider.com/image/58330239ba6eb67d058b573e-1200/bii asps by mobile os.png" alt="bii asps by mobile os" data-mce-source="BI Intelligence" />This story was delivered to BI Intelligence <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/intelligence/mobile-insider?IR=T&amp;utm_source=businessinsider&amp;utm_medium=content_marketing&amp;utm_term=content_marketing_subscription_newsletter_text_link_android-users-arent-switching-to-iphone-7-2016-11&amp;utm_content=subscription_newsletter_content_marketing_text_link&amp;utm_campaign=content_marketing_subscription_newsletter_link&amp;vertical=mobile">Apps and Platforms Briefing</a> subscribers. To learn more and subscribe, please <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/intelligence/mobile-insider?IR=T&amp;utm_source=businessinsider&amp;utm_medium=content_marketing&amp;utm_term=content_marketing_subscription_newsletter_text_link_android-users-arent-switching-to-iphone-7-2016-11&amp;utm_content=subscription_newsletter_content_marketing_text_link&amp;utm_campaign=content_marketing_subscription_newsletter_link&amp;vertical=mobile">click here</a>.</em></p>
<p>The iPhone 7 is drawing fewer Android users than the previous iPhone, the 6s, <a href="http://e.businessinsider.com/click/8161886.5146/aHR0cDovL2ZvcnR1bmUuY29tLzIwMTYvMTEvMTcvYXBwbGUtaXBob25lLTctYW5kcm9pZC8/56378b5356cf60046a8b4ca0B4ea8cc03" target="_blank" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?hl=en&amp;q=http://e.businessinsider.com/click/8161886.5146/aHR0cDovL2ZvcnR1bmUuY29tLzIwMTYvMTEvMTcvYXBwbGUtaXBob25lLTctYW5kcm9pZC8/56378b5356cf60046a8b4ca0B4ea8cc03&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1479816265196000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFG0K2N6W4-JeE3IUoaRI1C2h7M7g">according to</a> research firm Consumer Intelligence Research Partners (CIRP).</p>
<ul>
<li>Only 17% of consumers who have bought an iPhone 7 since it launched last September were previously Android users, CIRP said.</li>
<li>That&rsquo;s down from the 26% of consumers who purchased an iPhone 6s who had previously been Android users.</li>
</ul>
<p>The majority of new iPhone purchases are still coming from Apple&rsquo;s existing customer base. Apple has repeatedly <a href="http://e.businessinsider.com/click/8161886.5146/aHR0cDovL3d3dy5idXNpbmVzc2luc2lkZXIuY29tL2FwcGxlLWNlby10aW0tY29vay10YWxrcy1hYm91dC1hbmRyb2lkLXN3aXRjaGVycy0yMDE1LTQ/56378b5356cf60046a8b4ca0Bab2a0c69" target="_blank" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?hl=en&amp;q=http://e.businessinsider.com/click/8161886.5146/aHR0cDovL3d3dy5idXNpbmVzc2luc2lkZXIuY29tL2FwcGxlLWNlby10aW0tY29vay10YWxrcy1hYm91dC1hbmRyb2lkLXN3aXRjaGVycy0yMDE1LTQ/56378b5356cf60046a8b4ca0Bab2a0c69&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1479816265196000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHHVacDcB9ov6Eo-3ETTxkapWmCoA">said</a> that convincing Android users to switch is a key part of its growth strategy. Android has a much greater user base than Apple: Android <a href="http://e.businessinsider.com/click/8161886.5146/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbnRlbGxpZ2VuY2UuYnVzaW5lc3NpbnNpZGVyLmNvbS90aGUtYW5kcm9pZC1yZXBvcnQtdGhlLXdvcmxkcy1sYXJnZXN0LW1vYmlsZS1wbGF0Zm9ybS1hbmQtaXRzLWV4cGFuc2lvbi0yMDE1LTEw/56378b5356cf60046a8b4ca0Be3f5c4b0" target="_blank" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?hl=en&amp;q=http://e.businessinsider.com/click/8161886.5146/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbnRlbGxpZ2VuY2UuYnVzaW5lc3NpbnNpZGVyLmNvbS90aGUtYW5kcm9pZC1yZXBvcnQtdGhlLXdvcmxkcy1sYXJnZXN0LW1vYmlsZS1wbGF0Zm9ybS1hbmQtaXRzLWV4cGFuc2lvbi0yMDE1LTEw/56378b5356cf60046a8b4ca0Be3f5c4b0&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1479816265197000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGbbBcd7tg3pot-LZGyau1sRA0yCQ">controls</a> close to 80% of the smartphone market.</p>
<p>However, CIRP&rsquo;s research clearly indicates that the new iPhone 7 isn&rsquo;t drawing many Android users to switch. This is partially because of the model&rsquo;s cost. New iPhone models are consistently around $700, and can be more expensive in some markets because of import tariffs.</p>
<p>The vast majority of Android phones cost less than a third of that, as Android has become the operating system of choice for cheaper smartphone models that are popular in the world&rsquo;s developing regions. Manufacturers of these cheaper Android models are competing mostly on cost, driving down their prices. So the price gap between new iPhones and Android phones will continue to widen, making it harder for Apple to attract more Android users in many markets.</p>
<p>The iPhone is also set to face tougher competition from Android devices among high-cost smartphones thanks to Google&rsquo;s new Pixel phone, which has received favorable reviews. This will put increased pressure on Apple to make a splash with the new iPhone models it releases next year. Reports <a href="http://e.businessinsider.com/click/8161886.5146/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbnRlbGxpZ2VuY2UuYnVzaW5lc3NpbnNpZGVyLmNvbS93ZWNoYXQtZHJpdmVzLXRlbmNlbnRzLXEzLXJldmVudWUtZ3Jvd3RoLS1hbmRyb2lkLWRldmljZXMtaGFkLWJhY2tkb29yLS1hcHBsZS1tYXktZXhwYW5kLWlwaG9uZS1vZmZlcmluZy0yMDE2LTEx/56378b5356cf60046a8b4ca0B4443b593" target="_blank" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?hl=en&amp;q=http://e.businessinsider.com/click/8161886.5146/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbnRlbGxpZ2VuY2UuYnVzaW5lc3NpbnNpZGVyLmNvbS93ZWNoYXQtZHJpdmVzLXRlbmNlbnRzLXEzLXJldmVudWUtZ3Jvd3RoLS1hbmRyb2lkLWRldmljZXMtaGFkLWJhY2tkb29yLS1hcHBsZS1tYXktZXhwYW5kLWlwaG9uZS1vZmZlcmluZy0yMDE2LTEx/56378b5356cf60046a8b4ca0B4443b593&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1479816265197000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGYUQCR1hgZYTivcFN9Rmvd1jwqIQ">indicate</a> that Apple may release as many as three new iPhone models in 2017 to help attract a broader array of new users, including a new premium all-glass model with an OLED touchscreen.</p>
<p>The global smartphone market is expected to slow considerably over the next few years. Despite a record-setting holiday quarter, 2015 was likely the last year of double-digit growth for smartphone shipments.</p>
<p>Mature markets were at the heart of this year&rsquo;s deceleration. Adoption has reached new highs in key markets in the United States, Europe, and China. The pool of first-time buyers in these countries is shrinking rapidly, and sales are now primarily coming from phone upgrades.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, emerging markets will continue to see robust shipment growth. India and Indonesia, in particular, will help fuel a large share of the shipments growth within the global smartphone market over the next few years.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/intelligence/bi-intelligence-mobile-research-bundle?IR=T&amp;utm_source=businessinsider&amp;utm_medium=content_marketing&amp;utm_term=content_marketing_subscription_text_link_android-users-arent-switching-to-iphone-7-2016-11&amp;utm_content=subscription_content_marketing_text_link&amp;utm_campaign=content_marketing_subscription_link&amp;vertical=mobile" target="_blank">BI Intelligence</a>, Business Insider's premium research service, has compiled <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/intelligence/research-store/?IR=T&amp;utm_source=businessinsider&amp;utm_medium=content_marketing&amp;utm_term=content_marketing_store_text_link_android-users-arent-switching-to-iphone-7-2016-11&amp;utm_content=report_store_content_marketing_text_link&amp;utm_campaign=content_marketing_store_link&amp;vertical=mobile#!/The-Smartphone-Market-by-Country/p/63982870/" target="_blank">a detailed report on smartphones by country</a> that forecasts the market through 2021 to reflect slower, stabilizing growth in the long term.</p>
<p><strong><em>Here are some key points from the report:</em></strong></p>
<ul>
<li>The global smartphone market is still growing at a steady pace due to more widespread adoption in emerging markets. We estimate the global market will hit about 2.1 billion units shipped in 2021.</li>
<li>Shipments growth over the past few years has been driven by the falling price of smartphones, which has made handsets more accessible in emerging markets. The average selling price of a smartphone in India nearly halved between 2010 and 2015.</li>
<li>With relatively low smartphone penetration, we forecast Indian smartphone shipments to grow rapidly over the next five years. Nevertheless, India has a long way to go before it surpasses China as the world&rsquo;s leading market for smart handsets. India is estimated to account for roughly 10% of the global smartphone market in 2016, considerably less than China&rsquo;s 30% share.</li>
<li>The global platform wars are over, even as smartphone adoption continues to rise across various markets worldwide. Android and iOS are estimated to account for 97.3% of global platform market share in 2015, compared to 96.3% last year.</li>
<li>Apple closed the year with another strong quarter on the back of its iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus launches. Still, the vendor saw a slight decline in YoY growth of its share of the market in the face of stiff competition from Samsung and Chinese vendors such as Huawei.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong><em>In full, the report:</em></strong></p>
<ul>
<li>Forecasts global smartphone shipments through 2021.</li>
<li>Explores why India is the next high-growth smartphone market.</li>
<li>Breaks down the global smartphone platform wars.</li>
<li>Discusses smartphone vendor performance market share.</li>
</ul>
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<p>The choice is yours. But however you decide to acquire this report, you&rsquo;ve given yourself a powerful advantage in your understanding of the smartphone market.</p><p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/android-users-arent-switching-to-apple-iphone-7-2016-11#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/apple-iphone-android-market-share-sales-data-statistics-2016-11Apple is failing to dent Android's dominance over iPhonehttp://www.businessinsider.com/apple-iphone-android-market-share-sales-data-statistics-2016-11
Thu, 17 Nov 2016 07:46:05 -0500Jim Edwards
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static6.businessinsider.com/image/582da897dd08955e6d8b49cd-1040/1untitled.png" alt="ios" data-mce-source="Gartner / Business Insider" /></p><p>Over the last two years, Apple could not have asked for easier market conditions: The iPhone 6 was a huge hit, and eighteen months later Samsung's phone business collapsed after the disastrous Note 7 launch.</p>
<p>Yet Apple largely failed to take advantage of Samsung's bad luck. Its iPhone business is in decline, in terms of units sold. And its share of the global smartphone market has almost halved since 2014, <a href="http://www.gartner.com/newsroom/id/3516317">according to new statistics from the research firm Gartner Inc.</a></p>
<p>In the last quarter, Apple sold 43 million iPhones compared to 328 million Androids, Gartner says. Android now accounts for 88% of all phones sold. iOS market share is barely above 10% worldwide.&nbsp;</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>iOS global market share:</strong></li>
<li>Q4 2014: 20.%</li>
<li>Q3 2016: 11.5%</li>
<li><em>Source: Gartner</em>&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
<p>It's not just a story of Apple failing to reach a broader market for its high-end devices. It's also a testament to the resilience and popularity of Android. The operating system, given away free to manufacturers as an open-source product by Google, is often criticised by tech insiders for its fragmentation,&nbsp;the low frequency of software updates for users, and its security holes.</p>
<p>And yet the system that tech bloggers love to hate is kicking Apple's butt.</p>
<p>At the end of 2014, when Apple launched the iPhone 6, the new large-screen phablet began eating into Android's share of the market almost immediately. By February 2015, sales of <a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/apple-is-an-existential-threat-to-android-2015-2">Android devices went into decline for the first time ever</a>&nbsp;&mdash; an astonishing defeat for Android, especially given that the product is given away free to manufacturers.</p>
<p>Then, in summer 2016, Samsung's flagship Galaxy Note 7 was launched and then immediately aborted after dozens of the devices suddenly exploded. Samsung's unit sales collapsed 14% year on year in Q3 2016, according to Gartner.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Apple should have been on the verge of a massive global sea change in its favour.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Instead the opposite happened. iPhone collapsed and Android stole the market:</p>
<p><img src="http://static3.businessinsider.com/image/582da897dd08955e6d8b49ce-1019/2untitled.png" alt="ios" data-mce-source="Gartner / Business Insider" /></p>
<p>iPhone didn't benefit much from the gap in the market created by Samsung's absence, Gartner's data shows. Instead, Chinese Android manufacturers stepped up their game. China's passion for new Android phones from companies like Oppo, Vivo, and Huawei have&nbsp;<a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/iphone-users-abandon-loyalty-to-apple-2016-11">cut into Apple's famously high customer retention rates</a>, according to research from UBS.</p>
<p>Here is that same data in the form of percentage market share:</p>
<p><img src="http://static1.businessinsider.com/image/582da897dd08955e6d8b49cf-1000/3untitled.png" alt="ios" data-mce-source="Gartner / Business Insider" /></p>
<p>From this perspective, the launch of iPhone 6 &mdash; which looked like a killer blow to rival phones at the time &mdash; now looks like a brief bump in an otherwise downward historic trend.</p>
<p>Of course, Apple has never had a majority market share and it does not want one. Apple sells devices that are among the most expensive, putting them out of reach of most people. Its strategy makes Apple the most profitable smartphone&nbsp;maker on earth. <a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/apple-104-percent-smartphone-industry-profits-q3-2016-bmo-capital-markets-samsung-2016-11">Apple takes 104% of all smartphone profits</a>, globally. (The extra 4 percentage points come from the fact that some rivals sell at a loss.) If Apple were to expand its sales by offering&nbsp;lower prices its profitability &mdash; and its stock price &mdash; might fall.&nbsp;So Apple likely isn't&nbsp;too bothered that it is not the most popular kid on the block.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Nonetheless, there is a growing chorus of City and Wall Street <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/tim-cook-apple-strategy-clayton-christensen-jobs-theory-2016-10">analysts who want to know what Apple is going to do to either revive the iPhone or launch new products</a> that move the needle the way iPhone did&nbsp;two years ago. The <a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/iphone-sales-and-margin-pressure-in-2017-kgi-securities-2016-11">iPhone sales decline is not yet over</a>, they say, because iPhone 7 had lacklustre updates over iPhone 6s. The Apple Watch has proved unpopular with consumers. Rumoured Apple TV and Apple Car devices have failed to materialise.</p>
<p>These charts won't help the narrative around Apple &mdash; they make iPhone look like a&nbsp;problem rather than a solution to Apple's future.</p>
<p><em>Here are the numbers from Gartner we used to create these charts:</em></p>
<p><img src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/582da897dd08955e6d8b49d0-735/screen shot 2016-11-17 at 12.04.36.png" alt="ios" data-mce-source="Gartner" /></p><p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/apple-iphone-android-market-share-sales-data-statistics-2016-11#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> <p>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/tips-to-make-iphone-battery-last-longer-2016-11">These crucial tips will make your iPhone battery last longer</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/best-smartphones-2016-11The 20 best smartphones in the worldhttp://www.businessinsider.com/best-smartphones-2016-11
Wed, 16 Nov 2016 13:16:10 -0500Antonio Villas-Boas
<p><img src="http://static1.businessinsider.com/image/582ca02fe02ba71b008b4a25-1600/lg-v20-2nd-screen-2.png" alt="lg v20 2nd screen" data-mce-source="Antonio Villas-Boas/Business Insider" /></p><p></p>
<p>Since we last updated our list of best smartphones, Google came out with two new phones, and we're saying our final goodbye to the Nexus smartphones.</p>
<p>We've also seen a new entry from LG, and OnePlus made an unusual announcement earlier this month.</p>
<p>Here's our ranking of the best phones you can buy.</p>
<p><em>Note: All prices below indicate how much the phones typically cost without a carrier contract. Prices may vary depending on the retailer.</em></p><p><strong>SEE ALSO:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/smartphones-with-best-cell-signal-strength-reception-2016-9" >These are the smartphones with the best signal strength</a></strong></p>
<h3>20. BlackBerry Passport</h3>
<img src="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/5637c5e8dd089516668b45ae-400-300/20-blackberry-passport.jpg" alt="" />
<p><p>The BlackBerry Passport may look strange, but a lot of BlackBerry fans seem to love it. It has a really nice physical keyboard, but the key feature is its unique square design.</p>
<p><strong>Price: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/BlackBerry-Passport-Unlocked-Phone-Packaging/dp/B011DJN5K8/ref=sr_1_4?s=wireless&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1452003701&amp;sr=1-4&amp;keywords=blackberry+passport&amp;tag=TIsafetynet-20">$283</a></strong></p></p>
<br/><br/><h3>19. BlackBerry Classic</h3>
<img src="http://static1.businessinsider.com/image/5637c5e8dd089516668b45af-400-300/19-blackberry-classic.jpg" alt="" />
<p><p>If you were a BlackBerry fan in the company's heyday, you're going to love the BlackBerry Classic. It looks similar to older BlackBerry models, but features a sharp touch-screen and an excellent physical keyboard.</p>
<p><strong>Price: <a href="https://www.amazon.com/BlackBerry-Classic-SQC100-4-Unlocked-Smartphone/dp/B014VM1CYU/ref=sr_1_5?s=wireless&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1473774411&amp;sr=1-5&amp;keywords=blackberry+classic">$280</a></strong></p></p>
<br/><br/><h3>18. BlackBerry Priv</h3>
<img src="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/5637c5e8dd089516668b45b0-400-300/18-blackberry-priv.jpg" alt="" />
<p><p>The BlackBerry Priv is a huge departure for BlackBerry. Instead of running BlackBerry's own operating system, the Priv runs Android. While it may look like a standard Android phone, the Priv has a slide-out keyboard.</p>
<p>This could be a great device for those who want a physical keyboard but still want access to Google's apps and services that aren't available on other BlackBerry devices.</p>
<p><strong>Price: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Priv-Blackberry-Unlocked-Smartphone-Warranty/dp/B0169SNI3C/ref=sr_1_4?s=wireless&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1452003824&amp;sr=1-4&amp;keywords=BlackBerry+Priv" target="_blank">$370</a></strong></p>
<p><em><a href="http://www.techinsider.io/blackberry-priv-review-2015-11">Read the BlackBerry Priv review &raquo;</a></em></p></p>
<br/><br/><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/best-smartphones-2016-11#/#17-moto-g4-4">See the rest of the story at Business Insider</a> http://www.businessinsider.com/oneplus-3t-vs-oneplus-3-price-release-date-specs-photos-2016-11OnePlus just did something unusual by launching a new version of a phone it released just five months agohttp://www.businessinsider.com/oneplus-3t-vs-oneplus-3-price-release-date-specs-photos-2016-11
Tue, 15 Nov 2016 13:30:00 -0500Antonio Villas-Boas
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static1.businessinsider.com/image/582a372f46e27a3f008b6940-1200/oneplus-3t-front-cam.png" alt="oneplus 3t front cam" data-mce-source="OnePlus/Business Insider" /></p><p>Normally, companies announce new phone models a year after announcing the previous model.</p>
<p>OnePlus, on the other hand, just announced a new updated model of the OnePlus 3, called the OnePlus 3T. Worth noting: The OnePlus 3 was released just five months ago.</p>
<p>Why? OnePlus is unsatisfied with waiting a year before bringing you the latest and greatest specs.</p>
<p>"We're weird like that and we're not like the others" OnePlus told Business Insider, referring to the big guns at Apple and Samsung with annual release cycles.</p>
<p>Indeed, OnePlus' tagline "Never Settle" is ringing true.&nbsp;</p>
<p>But what about current OnePlus 3 owners? Are you "settling" with your "old" phone, even though it's barely five months old? I'm sure some OnePlus 3 owners won't be happy, as you might have waited for the 3T had you known OnePlus was going to release it just five months after the 3.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The good news is the OnePlus 3T isn't that much of an upgrade. The OnePlus 3 is still a top-drawer phone with top-drawer specs and premium performance, and OnePlus will update the Oxygen operating system that runs on top of pure Android with the same features as the 3T. The OnePlus 3 will also continue to receive the same Oxygen OS updates at the same time as the 3T does, too.</p>
<p>Check out the OnePlus 3T and the main differences over the 3:</p><p><strong>SEE ALSO:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/samsung-foldable-smartphone-2016-11" >Samsung's long-rumored foldable smartphone might be announced in 2017, and it looks like a flip-phone</a></strong></p>
<h3>Here's the OnePlus 3T in white and "soft gold," which will be released sometime after launch day on November 22.</h3>
<img src="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/582a233e691e88014a8b5dd4-400-300/heres-the-oneplus-3t-in-white-and-soft-gold-which-will-be-released-sometime-after-launch-day-on-november-22.jpg" alt="" />
<br/><br/><h3>And here's the new color OnePlus calls "gunmetal." It's a little darker than the "graphite" aluminum color on the OnePlus 3.</h3>
<img src="http://static6.businessinsider.com/image/582a23a4691e882a4e8b5dbe-400-300/and-heres-the-new-color-oneplus-calls-gunmetal-its-a-little-darker-than-the-graphite-aluminum-color-on-the-oneplus-3.jpg" alt="" />
<br/><br/><h3>Design and dimension-wise, the OnePlus 3T is identical to the OnePlus 3.</h3>
<img src="http://static3.businessinsider.com/image/582a257c691e888b588b635a-400-300/design-and-dimension-wise-the-oneplus-3t-is-identical-to-the-oneplus-3.jpg" alt="" />
<br/><br/><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/oneplus-3t-vs-oneplus-3-price-release-date-specs-photos-2016-11#/#-4">See the rest of the story at Business Insider</a> http://www.businessinsider.com/chinese-software-android-phones-stealing-us-data-report-2016-11Thousands of low-priced Android phones are reportedly sending user data to Chinahttp://www.businessinsider.com/chinese-software-android-phones-stealing-us-data-report-2016-11
Tue, 15 Nov 2016 11:11:58 -0500Ben Gilbert
<p>You and your friends may all have the newest iPhone, but you're actually in the minority: Over 80% of smartphone users are using an Android phone, <a href="http://www.idc.com/prodserv/smartphone-os-market-share.jsp">according to IDC</a>.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Many of these Android phones are of the low-cost variety. Not Samsung's big flagship Galaxy phones, or even Google's flashy new Pixel, but models you've never heard of &mdash; unlikely to be advertised during Monday night football &mdash; that get the job done. These are phones made by Chinese phone manufacturers, often re-branded in the US and sold under other names.</p>
<p>These phones are ubiquitous, which is why it's so scary that an unknown number are reportedly sending private user data to China every 72 hours.</p>
<p>Wait, <em>what</em>?</p>
<p><img src="http://static1.businessinsider.com/image/582b31b746e27a705a8b5e34-2400/istock_000034943146_large.jpg" alt="baby smartphone" data-mce-source="istock" /></p>
<p>You read that correctly: A newly-discovered piece of software running in an unknown number of Android phones is reportedly sending a variety of private user information directly to Chinese servers every 72 hours. The software, created by a Chinese firm named Shanghai Adups Technology Company, is said to be in hundreds of millions of devices &mdash; it's not clear how many of those devices are in the US, or how many users are affected.</p>
<p>The news comes from <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/16/us/politics/china-phones-software-security.html?hp&amp;action=click&amp;pgtype=Homepage&amp;clickSource=story-heading&amp;module=first-column-region&amp;region=top-news&amp;WT.nav=top-news&amp;_r=0">a report Tuesday morning in the New York Times</a> &mdash; a security firm named Kryptowire identified the malicious software, and said it does more than just archive/collect your text messages (though it also does that).</p>
<p>Apparently the software collects "the full contents of text messages, contact lists, call logs, location information and other data," and then sends that data to a Chinese server. US officials told the NYT that it's unclear whether the software was being as a means to collect user data for advertising or as a means of intelligence collection.</p>
<p><img src="http://static6.businessinsider.com/image/57b4bb9ece38f239008b7563-2400/rtr1p0m4.jpg" alt="Chinese pro" data-mce-source="Jason Lee/Reuters" /></p>
<p>A rep from the Chinese software company characterized the move as, "a private company that made a mistake," and said Adups isn't connected to the Chinese government. The software was allegedly written and used with the intent of assisting with customer support for one of Adups' clients, an unnamed Chinese company.</p>
<p>It's unclear how many phones are affected, or even how to tell if your phone has the malicious software running. Apparently US customers using a phone internationally, and customers who use prepaid phones, are most likely to be affected. At least one US phone company, BLU, has announced that around 120,000 of its phones were impacted; the company says it updated those phones to remove the issue.</p>
<p><strong>Update:</strong> Spokespeople from Chinese phone manufacturers Huawei and ZTE tell Business Insider that none of their phones are impacted by the software. A Huawei spokesperson said, "The company mentioned in this report is not on our list of approved suppliers, and we have never conducted any form of business with them."&nbsp;</p><p><strong>SEE ALSO:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/leeco-smartphones-lepro-3-le-s3-announced-2016-10" >The ‘Netflix of China’ just barged into the US with two high-value smartphones</a></strong></p>
<p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/chinese-software-android-phones-stealing-us-data-report-2016-11#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> <p>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/android-smartphone-different-uses-2016-8">5 wild uses for your old Android smartphone</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/r-googles-android-expands-competition-does-not-hurt-it-google-lawyer-2016-11Google is fighting back in its months-long Android antitrust battle with Europe (GOOG, GOOGL)http://www.businessinsider.com/r-googles-android-expands-competition-does-not-hurt-it-google-lawyer-2016-11
Thu, 10 Nov 2016 10:21:00 -0500Avery Hartmans
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/5824852546e27ab6608b5691-2400/ap_16278640049481.jpg" alt="sundar pichai google ceo" data-mce-source="AP" /></p><p>Google's Android mobile operating system expands competition rather than hurts it, Google's general counsel said on Thursday as the company&nbsp;rebutted EU antitrust charges that it uses the Android platform to stifle rivals.</p>
<p>The European Commission has also ignored the role played by iPhone maker Apple when it laid out the charge in April, Google general counsel Kent Walker wrote <a href="https://blog.google/topics/google-europe/android-choice-competition-response-europe/" target="_blank">on a blog</a>.</p>
<p>"Android hasn&rsquo;t hurt competition, it&rsquo;s expanded it," Walker wrote in a statement. "Android is the most flexible mobile platform out there, balancing the needs of thousands of manufacturers and operators, millions of app developers and more than a billion consumers. Upsetting this balance would raise prices and hamper innovation, choice and competition. That wouldn&rsquo;t just be a bad outcome for us. It would be a bad outcome for the entire ecosystem, and &mdash; most critically&nbsp;&mdash;&nbsp;for consumers."</p>
<p><span>The</span>&nbsp;Commission formally filed antitrust charges against Google over its Android mobile operating system <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/alphabet-investors-not-worried-google-europe-anitrust-commission-android-battle-2016-4" target="_blank">last April</a>,&nbsp;<span>alleging that Google&nbsp;abuses&nbsp;its dominant position in the marketplace to push&nbsp;its own products and apps over those of&nbsp;its competitors.</span></p>
<p>(Reporting by Foo Yun Chee; editing by Robert-Jan Bartunek)</p><p><strong>SEE ALSO:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/alphabet-investors-not-worried-google-europe-anitrust-commission-android-battle-2016-4" >No one mentioned the elephant in the room during Google's earnings call</a></strong></p>
<p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/r-googles-android-expands-competition-does-not-hurt-it-google-lawyer-2016-11#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/leeco-lepro-3-review-2016-11This new $400 phone is as strong as the Google Pixel — for $250 lesshttp://www.businessinsider.com/leeco-lepro-3-review-2016-11
Thu, 10 Nov 2016 09:00:00 -0500Jeff Dunn
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/58235563691e8861008b5c82-1201/leeco%20lepro%203-1-bi-review_bi%20reviews%20badge_table%204x3.png" alt="leeco lepro 3" data-mce-source="Business Insider/Jeff Dunn"></p><p>The best thing to happen to smartphones this year has nothing to do with <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/iphone-7-dual-camera-bokeh-2016-9" target="_blank">dual cameras</a> or <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/google-rick-osterloh-makes-public-debut-2016-10" target="_blank">Google hardware</a>.</p>
<p>Instead, it’s the increasingly heated competition in the price tier just below the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/iphone-7-review-2016-9" target="_blank">iPhone 7s</a>, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/samsung-galaxy-s7-review-2016-3" target="_blank">Galaxy S7s</a>, and <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/google-pixel-review-2016-10" target="_blank">Google Pixels</a> of the world. Specs and features that were once exclusive to phones that cost close to $700 are now freely available in devices that cost $300 less.</p>
<p>A <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/oneplus-3-huawei-honor-8-chinese-smartphones-2016-8" target="_blank">handful of Chinese companies</a> have led the charge. You won’t find the $400 <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/oneplus-3-review-2016-6" target="_blank">OnePlus 3</a>, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/zte-axon-7-review-2016-8" target="_blank">ZTE Axon 7</a>, or <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/huawei-honor-8-review-best-phone-under-400-2016-8" target="_blank">Huawei Honor 8</a> on a carrier store shelf, but in terms of pure horsepower, there’s very little separating them from the higher-priced flagships you see on TV. They look nice, too.</p>
<p>Now, you can add another to the list. The<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/leeco-smartphones-lepro-3-le-s3-announced-2016-10" target="_blank"> LeEco LePro 3</a> is the first phone to hit the US from Chinese (not French!) tech conglomerate LeEco, and makes it even harder for every company not named Apple, Samsung, or Google to sell a phone for more than $400.</p>
<p>It’s also not going to be the hit LeEco wants — and <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/r-chinas-leeco-to-slow-pace-of-growth-faces-big-company-disease-ceo-2016-11" target="_blank">possibly needs</a>. Let’s take a closer look.</p><p><strong>SEE ALSO:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/oneplus-3-huawei-honor-8-chinese-smartphones-2016-8" >It’s time to give serious consideration to buying a Chinese smartphone</a></strong></p>
<h3>Let's start with what's good about the LeEco LePro 3. For one, it's fast and powerful.</h3>
<img src="http://static5.businessinsider.com/image/582345e9691e88284e8b4edf-400-300/lets-start-with-whats-good-about-the-leeco-lepro-3-for-one-its-fast-and-powerful.jpg" alt="" />
<p><p>The LePro 3 is among the strongest phones in the world, full stop. It runs on Qualcomm&rsquo;s latest Snapdragon 821 processor, with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage. The 821 chip isn&rsquo;t a big leap over its predecessor, but it&rsquo;s clocked high enough here to make the phone consistently quick and fluid.</p>
<p>We&rsquo;ve long passed the point of diminishing returns when it comes to comfortable smartphone performance, but even with that in mind, the LePro 3 handled anything I threw at it with ease. Games ran smoothly, apps loaded quickly, and multitasking was a snap.</p>
<p>The back got a little toasty after playing a new, graphics-heavy game like &ldquo;Deus Ex Go,&rdquo; but all told this is a powerhouse.</p>
<p>Benchmark testing mostly backed this up. The LePro 3 scored a 4,339 in Geekbench 4, which measures overall system performance. That was higher than both the Google Pixel (4,146) and OnePlus 3 (4,015).</p>
<p>On a graphics test like 3DMark&rsquo;s Sling Shot, it got a 2,585, again higher than the Pixel (2,518) and OnePlus (2,469).</p>
<p>Are these huge differences? No. But the point is you get high-end power at a midrange price.</p></p>
<br/><br/><h3>Its build is smooth, sturdy, and solid.</h3>
<img src="http://static5.businessinsider.com/image/58234609691e8804018b5bf0-400-300/its-build-is-smooth-sturdy-and-solid.jpg" alt="" />
<p><p>The LePro 3 is better designed than the Google Pixel. It&rsquo;s got a chilly coat of brushed aluminum on its back, and a smooth layer of glass on its front. Both feel great. On both sides, its top and bottom are near-perfectly symmetrical. Nothing about it is loose or cheap &mdash; all the buttons are responsive and easy to reach, and though it&rsquo;s a bit on the hefty side, that helps it feel like something substantial.</p>
<p>The LePro 3 is big, and thus not easily usable with one hand, but it&rsquo;s not wasteful. While the Pixel and the iPhone have uselessly large bezels, the LePro 3 keeps things relatively slim. More importantly, it actually makes use of that bottom bezel, putting a trio of capacitive buttons there instead of chewing up room on screen. Those buttons are in the wrong order &mdash; the back button is on the right instead of the left &mdash; but it&rsquo;s a net positive.</p>
<p>As far as features go, there&rsquo;s a fast charging USB-C port on its bottom, decent-but-not-great dual speakers on its front, an IR blaster on its top (if you ever feel like using it as a TV remote), and a large fingerprint scanner on its back. That scanner isn&rsquo;t as fast as what&rsquo;s on other devices, but it&rsquo;s in a comfortable spot, and it works well enough.</p>
<p>The caveat? It looks like a carbon copy of the OnePlus 3. In general, there&rsquo;s little that&rsquo;s visually distinct about it. But in my two weeks of testing, everyone else who got a hold of it thought it felt nice. I agree.</p></p>
<br/><br/><h3>Battery life is good.</h3>
<img src="http://static1.businessinsider.com/image/582346e1691e8821008b5c10-400-300/battery-life-is-good.jpg" alt="" />
<p><p>Inside that aluminum frame is a 4,070mAh battery. That&rsquo;s really big. Common wisdom would suggest a battery that large might bring a couple days of battery life &mdash; especially without a super high-resolution display &mdash; but LePro 3 isn&rsquo;t that efficient.</p>
<p>Still, it&rsquo;s good: I got around 9-10 hours of juice with an average mix of web browsing, video viewing, and sporadic game playing. It just needs the extra weight to get there.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p></p>
<br/><br/><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/leeco-lepro-3-review-2016-11#/#the-display-is-pleasant-4">See the rest of the story at Business Insider</a> http://www.businessinsider.com/android-auto-update-launches-for-older-cars-2016-11Google's new driving app will add a little smarts to your older car (GOOG, GOOGL)http://www.businessinsider.com/android-auto-update-launches-for-older-cars-2016-11
Mon, 07 Nov 2016 11:00:00 -0500Steve Kovach
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static5.businessinsider.com/image/5820873d691e88bb798b47ca-2383/img_0160.jpg" alt="Android Auto on google pixel" data-mce-source="Steve Kovach/Business Insider" /></p><p>Your car can get a little smarter and connected, even if it's a bit on the older side.</p>
<p>Google is launching a new version of its driving app Android Auto on select Android phones Monday. The app features a new interface with large buttons and voice commands designed to be used in the car.</p>
<p>Android Auto works with infotainment systems on some newer cars, but this version has new features if you have an older car without a screen and Android compatibility. It can even be set to launch automatically when your phone connects to your car's Bluetooth audio system.</p>
<p>It's designed for people who like to mount their phones on their dashboard while driving.</p>
<p>The app is mostly used for navigation through Google Maps, but third-party apps like streaming music services can tie into Android Auto too. It also lets you send and receive calls or texts through voice controls.</p>
<p>The new update will be rolling out to Android phones running Android version 5.0 or later throughout the day Monday.</p><p><strong>SEE ALSO:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/samsung-reaction-to-note-7-recall-2016-11" >Samsung's culture needs to change if it wants to survive</a></strong></p>
<p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/android-auto-update-launches-for-older-cars-2016-11#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> <p>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/google-pixel-phone-first-look-hands-on-video-2016-10">We got our hands on the Pixel — Google's first ever smartphone</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/android-record-high-smartphone-market-2016-11Android has captured a record-high share of the smartphone market (GOOG, GOOGL)http://www.businessinsider.com/android-record-high-smartphone-market-2016-11
Fri, 04 Nov 2016 10:17:16 -0400BI Intelligence
<p><em><img style="float:right;" src="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/581c909c46e27a2e008b4952-700/global smartphone shipments, by platform.png" alt="Global Smartphone Shipments, By Platform" data-mce-source="BI Intelligence" />This story was delivered to BI Intelligence <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/intelligence/mobile-insider?IR=T&amp;utm_source=businessinsider&amp;utm_medium=content_marketing&amp;utm_term=content_marketing_subscription_newsletter_text_link_androids-os-captures-record-high-share-of-market-2016-11&amp;utm_content=subscription_newsletter_content_marketing_text_link&amp;utm_campaign=content_marketing_subscription_newsletter_link&amp;vertical=mobile">Apps and Platforms Briefing</a> subscribers. To learn more and subscribe, please <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/intelligence/mobile-insider?IR=T&amp;utm_source=businessinsider&amp;utm_medium=content_marketing&amp;utm_term=content_marketing_subscription_newsletter_text_link_androids-os-captures-record-high-share-of-market-2016-11&amp;utm_content=subscription_newsletter_content_marketing_text_link&amp;utm_campaign=content_marketing_subscription_newsletter_link&amp;vertical=mobile">click here</a>.</em></p>
<p>The Android platform captured a record 88% of the 375 million new smartphones shipped worldwide in Q3 2016, according to a new <a href="http://e.businessinsider.com/click/8033363.4538/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuc3RyYXRlZ3lhbmFseXRpY3MuY29tL3N0cmF0ZWd5LWFuYWx5dGljcy9uZXdzL3N0cmF0ZWd5LWFuYWx5dGljcy1wcmVzcy1yZWxlYXNlcy9zdHJhdGVneS1hbmFseXRpY3MtcHJlc3MtcmVsZWFzZS8yMDE2LzExLzAyL3N0cmF0ZWd5LWFuYWx5dGljcy1hbmRyb2lkLWNhcHR1cmVzLXJlY29yZC04OC1wZXJjZW50LXNoYXJlLW9mLWdsb2JhbC1zbWFydHBob25lLXNoaXBtZW50cy1pbi1xMy0yMDE2Iy5XQnRnZHVFcg/56378b5356cf60046a8b4ca0B68ce5bef" target="_blank" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?hl=en&amp;q=http://e.businessinsider.com/click/8033363.4538/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuc3RyYXRlZ3lhbmFseXRpY3MuY29tL3N0cmF0ZWd5LWFuYWx5dGljcy9uZXdzL3N0cmF0ZWd5LWFuYWx5dGljcy1wcmVzcy1yZWxlYXNlcy9zdHJhdGVneS1hbmFseXRpY3MtcHJlc3MtcmVsZWFzZS8yMDE2LzExLzAyL3N0cmF0ZWd5LWFuYWx5dGljcy1hbmRyb2lkLWNhcHR1cmVzLXJlY29yZC04OC1wZXJjZW50LXNoYXJlLW9mLWdsb2JhbC1zbWFydHBob25lLXNoaXBtZW50cy1pbi1xMy0yMDE2Iy5XQnRnZHVFcg/56378b5356cf60046a8b4ca0B68ce5bef&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1478344424756000&amp;usg=AFQjCNG0GAYc6SGjaWKMOPYz9P5J5v2Kfw">report</a> from Strategy Analytics.</p>
<p>Android&rsquo;s growth in new smartphones was largely driven by greater smartphone adoption in India, Africa, and the Middle East, where Apple&rsquo;s competing iOS platform has little market penetration.</p>
<p>Android&rsquo;s market share growth will continue in the near term thanks to the device manufacturers that produce low-cost Android phones for these markets, Strategy Analytics predicted. Apple has yet to manufacture an iPhone at a price point that can draw mass appeal in these markets, and emerging platforms like Tizen don&rsquo;t have enough support from device manufacturers and app developers to put a dent in Android&rsquo;s share, the report explained.</p>
<p>However, the report noted that very few of the hundreds of smartphone manufacturers that leverage Android make any money, and Google&rsquo;s new Pixel smartphone is set to compete with Android devices from other high-end manufacturers. In the long term, these factors could drive device manufacturers to give more serious consideration to some of the emerging platforms. As consumers in emerging markets gain more disposable income though, it could create more opportunities for low-cost manufacturers to sell more profitable Android devices in these markets, which would help cement Android&rsquo;s dominance in these markets.</p>
<p>The global smartphone market is expected to slow considerably over the next few years. Despite a record-setting holiday quarter, 2015 was likely the last year of double-digit growth for smartphone shipments.</p>
<p>Mature markets were at the heart of this year&rsquo;s deceleration. Adoption has reached new highs in key markets in the United States, Europe, and China. The pool of first-time buyers in these countries is shrinking rapidly, and sales are now primarily coming from phone upgrades.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, emerging markets will continue to see robust shipment growth. India and Indonesia, in particular, will help fuel a large share of the shipments growth within the global smartphone market over the next few years.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/intelligence/bi-intelligence-mobile-research-bundle?IR=T&amp;utm_source=businessinsider&amp;utm_medium=content_marketing&amp;utm_term=content_marketing_subscription_text_link_androids-os-captures-record-high-share-of-market-2016-11&amp;utm_content=subscription_content_marketing_text_link&amp;utm_campaign=content_marketing_subscription_link&amp;vertical=mobile" target="_blank">BI Intelligence</a>, Business Insider's premium research service, has compiled <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/intelligence/research-store/?IR=T&amp;utm_source=businessinsider&amp;utm_medium=content_marketing&amp;utm_term=content_marketing_store_text_link_androids-os-captures-record-high-share-of-market-2016-11&amp;utm_content=report_store_content_marketing_text_link&amp;utm_campaign=content_marketing_store_link#!/The-Smartphone-Market-by-Country/p/63982870/" target="_blank">a detailed report on smartphones by country</a> that forecasts the market through 2021 to reflect slower, stabilizing growth in the long term.</p>
<p><strong><em>Here are some key points from the report:</em></strong></p>
<ul>
<li>The global smartphone market is still growing at a steady pace due to more widespread adoption in emerging markets. We estimate the global market will hit about 2.1 billion units shipped in 2021.</li>
<li>Shipments growth over the past few years has been driven by the falling price of smartphones, which has made handsets more accessible in emerging markets. The average selling price of a smartphone in India nearly halved between 2010 and 2015.</li>
<li>With relatively low smartphone penetration, we forecast Indian smartphone shipments to grow rapidly over the next five years. Nevertheless, India has a long way to go before it surpasses China as the world&rsquo;s leading market for smart handsets. India is estimated to account for roughly 10% of the global smartphone market in 2016, considerably less than China&rsquo;s 30% share.</li>
<li>The global platform wars are over, even as smartphone adoption continues to rise across various markets worldwide. Android and iOS are estimated to account for 97.3% of global platform market share in 2015, compared to 96.3% last year.</li>
<li>Apple closed the year with another strong quarter on the back of its iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus launches. Still, the vendor saw a slight decline in YoY growth of its share of the market in the face of stiff competition from Samsung and Chinese vendors such as Huawei.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong><em>In full, the report:</em></strong></p>
<ul>
<li>Forecasts global smartphone shipments through 2021.</li>
<li>Explores why India is the next high-growth smartphone market.</li>
<li>Breaks down the global smartphone platform wars.</li>
<li>Discusses smartphone vendor performance market share.</li>
</ul>
<p>To get your copy of this invaluable guide, choose one of these options:</p>
<ol>
<li><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Subscribe to an ALL-ACCESS Membership with BI Intelligence and gain immediate access to this report AND over 100 other expertly researched deep-dive reports, subscriptions to all of our daily newsletters, and much more. &gt;&gt; </span><strong style="line-height: 1.5em;"><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/intelligence/bi-intelligence-mobile-research-bundle?IR=T&amp;utm_source=businessinsider&amp;utm_medium=content_marketing&amp;utm_term=content_marketing_subscription_text_link_androids-os-captures-record-high-share-of-market-2016-11&amp;utm_content=subscription_content_marketing_text_link&amp;utm_campaign=content_marketing_subscription_link&amp;vertical=mobile">START A MEMBERSHIP</a></strong></li>
<li><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Purchase the report and download it immediately from our research store. &gt;&gt; </span><strong style="line-height: 1.5em;"><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/intelligence/research-store/?IR=T&amp;utm_source=businessinsider&amp;utm_medium=content_marketing&amp;utm_term=content_marketing_store_text_link_androids-os-captures-record-high-share-of-market-2016-11&amp;utm_content=report_store_content_marketing_text_link&amp;utm_campaign=content_marketing_store_link#!/The-Smartphone-Market-by-Country/p/63982870/">BUY THE REPORT</a></strong></li>
</ol>
<p>The choice is yours. But however you decide to acquire this report, you&rsquo;ve given yourself a powerful advantage in your understanding of the smartphone market.</p><p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/android-record-high-smartphone-market-2016-11#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/samsung-galaxy-note-7-profits-chart-2016-10Samsung’s Galaxy Note 7 disaster has killed its mobile profitshttp://www.businessinsider.com/samsung-galaxy-note-7-profits-chart-2016-10
Thu, 27 Oct 2016 16:40:34 -0400Jeff Dunn
<p>You <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/samsung-galaxy-note-7-recall-dead-chart-2016-10?r=DE&amp;IR=T" target="_blank">probably know the story</a> by now: Samsung releases phone, phone starts exploding, chaos ensues. The Korean company's Galaxy Note 7 went from one of the most promising handsets its ever made to one of the biggest disasters in consumer tech history. To make matters worse, Samsung still hasn&rsquo;t specified how its device managed to malfunction through two full recalls.</p>
<p>One thing that isn&rsquo;t a mystery? The fiasco has been horrible for Samsung&rsquo;s bottom line. The company announced its third-quarter earnings early Thursday, and as this chart from <a href="http://statista.com" target="_blank">Statista</a> shows, its <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/sales-revenue-exploding-galaxy-note-7-cost-samsung-2016-10" target="_blank">mobile profits plunged</a> a whopping 96% year-over-year, in large part due to the lack of a flagship product. Overall net profits were down roughly 17%.</p>
<p>Now, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/samsung-galaxy-note-7-recall-stock-chart-2016-10" target="_blank">Samsung is a huge company</a>, with its hands in many segments beyond smartphones. It&rsquo;s got a lot of money in the bank, and a return to its usual mobile profitability wouldn&rsquo;t be surprising. But if you&rsquo;re working there, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/samsung-galaxy-s8-rumors-features-leaks-2016-10" target="_blank">the Galaxy S8</a> can&rsquo;t come soon enough.</p>
<p><img src="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/581264bc362ca41d008b5635-1200/20161027_samsung.png" alt="samsung profits chart" data-mce-source="Statista" /></p><p><strong>SEE ALSO:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/apple-iphone-sales-china-decline-chart-2016-10" >China is still dragging Apple down</a></strong></p>
<p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/samsung-galaxy-note-7-profits-chart-2016-10#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> <p>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/hidden-iphone-settings-and-features-2016-11">3 hidden iPhone features only power users know about</a></p>